It seems the last two weeks have been pretty hard on my health.  With the seemingly endless list of things to accomplish, my blood-pressure has shot through the roof.  Though, when I force myself to examine things rationally, there really isn’t all that much I need to do.  It really just comes down to two things:

  • I have 4 weeks left with my current employer, so I need to finish everything there
  • I have no prospects for working in Japan, where I need to be in a short period of time

So suffice to say, with the highly elevated blood-pressure, the ability to think clearly has been lost.  Discussions with people at work have become incredibly difficult as I seem to be insanely defensive, despite the fact they’re just saying “hello” in passing.  The slightest thing seems to destroy my ability to concentrate on work.  And, if that’s not enough, the only way for me to accomplish anything of value while hammering out code is to have Xzibit or 50 Cent spittin’ out some lyrics on my headphones, which only makes me seem even more anti-social than normal.  Not that there’s anything wrong with that ….

Previously I could get around all of this by relaxing at home for an evening.  This would often involve reading a book, or watching some documentaries, or some repeat episodes of American Dad and Family Guy.  Daily Show and Colbert Report have been part of my daily unwind regimand for a long time now, and Dance Dance Revolution is a big part of my gaming (despite the fact that I’m white and almost 30), the physical exertions involved with that used to be a great stress relief.  But these things aren’t working anymore.  If anything, my frustrations are only destroying the enjoyment of these passtimes.

So what do you do to relax when everything you enjoy just adds to the stress?

I’ve already cut back on the coffee, and I’m loathe to go back to food as the universal “feel good” solution.  There has to be something that doesn’t involve pills or some weird philosophy (I’m looking at you, Scientology) to help me regain focus.  Maybe it’s time to get back into golf … only this time I won’t destroy the clubs and toss them in the pond ….